JOURNEY INTO CHRISTMAS by Bess Streeter Aldrich

Journey into Christmas and Other Stories is a bizarre collection of stories that all take place on Christmas Eve. Here I thought that the title was just one story in the collection, but no, all 12 stories are about Christmas. I was an interesting week of reading. The stories are all lighthearted, some of them start out sad or bah humbug, but then they all turn for the better by the end. Some of the endings are still sad but contain the hope that Christmas has typically holds for believers.

The best of these Christmas tales is the title story “Journey into Christmas.” The main character is Margaret Staley, grandmother whose family has always convened to celebrate the holidays. However, this Christmas everyone has an excuse and no one is coming. Margaret is on the verge of breaking down. She goes over all their excuses, phoned and letters. The only one that has not even called is Lee and Margaret has thoughts of never forgiving him. Then, when Margaret is at her worst, having set up the living room as if the family were there, Lee calls. Lee has had a baby girl. He has named it Margaret after his mother.

This is a really good story. It has a lot of dramatic tension that builds into a heavy depression. What I like the most is that Margaret’s depression is just not an internal monologue or a 3rd person narration. Margaret’s depression is apparent in her actions. She reads the letters that her children sent explaining their holiday absence over again. She is repulsed by the neighborhood carolers and closes her curtains. And then scene where she organizes the living room chairs around the Christmas tree, pairing them by family, is the height of her decline.

I will remember this story for a long time. Not only did it make me feel guilty and called call my mother, but it is a very good model for showing how a character can act out their neurosis. The show plus tell of this story is very powerful.

Streeter Aldrich, Bess. “Journey into Christmas.” Journey into Christmas and Other Stories. Lincoln: Bison Books, 1985 p. 1 - 17

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